Draperies or curtains of the general type referred to as "Roman shades" are well known in the art. Examples of these are found, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,752,610; 3,322,182; 3,439,725; and 3,487,875. Essentially, the shades disclosed therein are constructed so that, when raised, the shades are gathered in generally horizontal folds to provide the effects of a Roman shade. To operate these shades, various guide or pull strings are used in conjunction with string guides attached to the shades. One method of guiding the various strings is to thread them through guide rings attached to the shade as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,322,182 and 3,487,875. In this construction, separate guide rings must be attached to the shades. Another method of attaching the various strings is to thread them through apertures in fabric shade pleats which pleats are formed and stiffened by metal slats. Such construction is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,752,610 and requires that additional metal slats be crimped onto the pleats. Additionally, this last mentioned patent teaches that the guide strings remain in the opening in which the shade is mounted even when the shade is raised.
As exemplified by these patents, the manufacture of Roman shades by known techniques involves a relatively large number of steps. After the fabrics are sewn together, separate fabric strips are usually secured to the fabric for support and to hold guide rings. Additional steps of securing either guide rings to the shade or of securing stiffening slats have been necessary. These steps have added to the expense of Roman shade production. Furthermore, the use of woven fabrics in the manufacture of Roman shades have added to their expense.